Mississippi’s Workplace Wellness Tax Credit may be on its way to becoming law! It has cleared a major hurdle: the Mississippi House of Representatives passed it by an overwhelming majority. Authored by House Ways and Means Chairman, Jeff Smith of Columbus, HB1616 would allow $1 million in tax credits for employers who provide wellness programs for their employees. The tax credit would be capped at half of the cost of the wellness plan, up to a maximum of $20,000 per employer, and would be available on a first come, first serve basis.

MASI applauds Chairman Smith for his leadership and support of this important issue. His enthusiasm for this bill has never wavered, and we appreciate his leadership.

Support Now Needed in the Senate!

HB1616 now heads to the Senate – and it is in the Senate where we need your help. For the past several years, the Senate has failed to pass the Workplace Wellness Tax Credit.

Last week, they allowed our Senate Bill to die on the calendar. Without the Senate’s support, this bill will never become law.

We encourage our members to contact Lt. Governor Tate Reeves and urge him to support HB1616! To reach Lt. Governor Reeves, call 601-359-3200 or email him, ltgov@senate.ms.gov.

MASI Thanks Speaker Gunn

MASI wishes to thank House Speaker Philip Gunn whose support has been invaluable. Many will recall that Speaker Gunn was the first state official to endorse our Wellness Tax Credit, three years ago in 2014.

If you’re like me, you really get tired of hearing about how fat we are. Do we really need anyone to tell us?? Sure we have some of the best cooks in the world, but it’s just awful how much we get picked on. Travel to any other place, especially a foreign country, and it’s easy to see why we are fat – talk about awesome Southern cuisine!

The cornerstone of MASI’s 2017 Legislative Agenda is the Workplace Wellness Tax Credit, to allow $1 million in tax credits for employers who provide wellness programs for their employees. This is a Win-Win proposal for workers’ comp plans and health plans both!

As The Voice of One for self-insured healthcare and workers’ comp in Mississippi, MASI wants to serve you! As in years past, we will be hard at work tracking bills and keeping you informed of the ones that concern you. We will endeavor to safeguard our industry from harmful legislation and over-reaching regulation. If at any time you hear of legislation that concerns you, please do not hesitate to contact us!